Container for fishing tackle or the like

ABSTRACT

A container for carrying fishing or hunting supplies or for use as a tool box, sewing chest or various industrial uses. A large container or case is provided with supports on which a tray is removably mounted. The tray is provided with divider ribs which are adapted to hold small articles containers. A handle is pivotally mounted on the tray and serves to assist in the removal of the tray from the container and to prevent the small article containers from becoming jumbled when the container is closed. The supports for the tray are spaced from the bottom of the box so that large articles may be carried in the box below the tray.

United States Patent Donald T. Wynne Cleveland, Ohio;

David E. Workman, LosAngeles, Calit.; Joseph W. Kneier, Chesterland,Ohio [21] Appl. No. 874,774

[22] Filed Nov. 7, 1969 [45] Patented Dec. 21, 1971 [73] AssigneePendleton Tool Industries, Inc.

' Los Angeles, Calif.

[72] Inventors [54] CONTAINER FOR FISHING TACKLE OR THE LIKE 8 Claims, 3Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S. Cl 312/294, 206/16, 312/272, 312/312 [51] Int. Cl A471! 57/24[50] Field of Search 206/16, 4; 220/97, 29; 312/306, 308, 310, 311, 309,312, 272

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,614,910 1/1927 Yarder1,976,765 10/1934 Berry...- 206/16 E 2,851,188 9/1958 Pavelle... 220/973,305,076 2/1967 Fleenoru 206/ 1 6 3,432,025 13/1969 Luhe 220/163,493,102 2-ll970 Belokin,.lr. 206/16 Primary Examiner-James T. McCall Attorneys-Carl R. Horten David W. Tibbott and Frar k H.

Tfibfigofi V v v it .v

ABSTRACT: A container for carrying fishing or hunting supplies or foruse as a tool box, sewing chest or various industrial uses. A largecontainer or case is provided with supports on which a tray is removablymounted. The tray is provided with divider ribs which are adapted tohold small articles containers. A handle is pivotally mounted on thetray and serves to assist in the removal of the tray from the containerand to prevent the small article containers from becoming jumbled whenthe container is closed. The supports for the tray are spaced from thebottom of the box so that large articles may be carried in the box belowthe tray.

PATENTED B5821 an 3628.843

INVENTORS DONALD I WYN/VE DAV/D E. WORK/VAN JOSEPH W KNE/ER ATTORNEY 1CONTAINER roxrlsmuc TACKLE on THE LIKE BACKGROUND oF THE INVENTION Thisinvention relates to containers or cases which can be used for carryingboth large and small articles and in particular to containers forcarrying fishing tackle such as reels, lures, hooks and the like.

Prior to the present invention, most tackle boxes included a largecontainer with cantilevered or linked trays which would swing upwardlywhen the box was opened to expose the lower half of the box. These traysare compartmentalized and used for carrying small articles such as luresand hooks. Large articles can be carried in the lower half of the box.Tackle boxes such as these have the disadvantage that the entire tacklebox must be carried from place to place even through the user may wishonly to use some of the small articles. In the event the tackle box wasdropped or for some reason upset, the small articles often becomeentangled with each other. In addition, the number of compartments whichcan be placed in the trays of prior tackle boxes is limited. By theirvery nature, it is desirable to carry fish lures and the like inindividual compartments in order to avoid entanglement. Hence, withprior tackle boxes, the number of small articles which can be neatlycarried is limited.

Compartmentalized small article containers for carrying fishing tacklehave long been known. Prior to the present invention, however, nosuitable tackle box has been available which provided a convenientcarrying arrangement for these small article containers. With priortackle boxes, it is necessary to place these small article containers inthe area of the tackle box designed for carrying large articles. Thissubstantially reduces the amount of space which can be used for largerarticles such as fishing reels.

SUMMARY It is therefore the principle object of this invention toprovide a container or case which can be used for carrying both largeand small articles and provides a convenient arrangement for carryingsmall article containers while retaining adequate space for carryinglarge articles.

It is another object of this invention to provide a fishing tackle boxwhich permits small article containers to be carried in the tackle boxin an orderly manner.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a container whichhas more useful area than prior containers and is particularly usefulfor carrying small articles.

In general, the foregoing and other objects will be carried out byproviding a container comprising: first and second box halves eachhaving sidewalls and a bottom; hinge means pivotally connecting an edgeof one side of each box half so that the container can be swung betweenopen and closed positions, whereby the first box half serves as thebottom of the container and the second box half servesas the top of thecontainer; support means mounted within said first box half; tray meansremovably mounted on said support means; and a plurality of parallel,spaced-apart retainer means mounted on the inside of said tray meansadapted to hold small article containers within said tray means.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The invention will be described inconnection with annexed drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the container of the present inventionwith small article containers positioned therein;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the container of the present inventionwith the container in a closed position; and

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 3- 3 of FIG. 2with the small article container removed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawing, thereis shown a container or case which is particularly adapted to be used asa fishing tackle box and may be constructed of any suitable materialsuch as plastic. The container is generally indicated at l and isconstructed of a pair of box halves 2 and 3. The first box half 2includes end walls 4 and sidewalls 5 and a bottomb which serves as thebottom of the container. The second box half 3 includes end walls 7 andsidewalls 8 and a bottom 9 which serves as the top of the container. Thetwo box halves 2 and 3 are substantially identical in configuration. Thesecond box half 3 is provided with a suitably recessed carrying handle10. The box halves are provided with a lip-sealing arrangement generallyindicated at 11 around their edges so that the container will besubstantially watertight when closed. A hinge 12 connects the box halvesso that the container can be swung between open and closed positions.

A support means 15 is mounted within first box half 2 at a point nearthe upper edge of the box half. The support means 15 includes a pair ofbrackets 16 each mounted on an end wall 4 of the box half 2. Eachbracket 16 includes a pair of upwardly projecting tabs 17.

A tray 20 is removably mounted within the first box half 2 on thesupport brackets 16. The tray 20 is provided with feet 21 at its cornersand adownwardly projecting flange 22 on its ends. The feet 21 serve assupports for the tray when it is removed from the lower box half 2 andset aside. The feet 21 also act as a locking index to position and holdthe tray 20 in place on the brackets 16 to thereby prevent lateralmovement of tray relative to the case ll.

Opposite sidewalls of the tray 20 are provided with a plurality ofparallel, spaced-apart ribs or spacers 23 which project inwardly fromthe sidewall tray 20. The ribs or spacers 23 on one side of the tray 20are aligned with the ribs or spacers on the other side so that smallarticle containers such as those shown at 35 in FIG. 1 can snugly fitbetween the ribs 20. Preferably, the containers 35 are compartmentalizedso that small articles to be carried can be separated from each other.

A handle, generally indicated at 24 is pivotally connected to the tray20. The handle includes an elongated bar 25 and a pair of downwardlyextending L-shaped members 26. One leg of the L is connected to the bar25 and the other leg is pivotally connected to the tray 20 at 36. TheL-shaped members 26 fit with a recess 28 in theend walls of the tray 20.The recesses 27 are beveled at 28 to limit the pivotal movement of thehandle 24. The underside of the handle is provided with a grip which isbeveled at 29. The recess 2 is beveled as at 38 to limit the upwardmovement of the handle 24 to a position where the bar 25 is centeredwith respect to the tray 20. This insures proper balance of the traywhen it is lifted out of the box half 2. I

The handle 24 serves two functions. The first function is to assist theuser in lifting the tray 20 out of the container 1. The second functionis to assist in retaining the small article containers 35 within thetray 20 and container I particularly when the container is closed. Thissecond function can best be seen by referring to FIG. is in the Thebevel 29 of the handle 24 engages the small article containers 35 whenthe handle 24 is in the position shown in FIG. 2. When the container 1is closed, the handle 24 cannot swing an appreciable distance away fromthe small article containers 35 because it is confined by the top of thecontainer 1. In this position, therefore, if the container l is droppedfor for some reason upset, the small article containers 35 will notbecome dislodged from their position in the tray 20. Thus, smallarticles which are carried in the containers 35 will not fall out andbecome entangled with each other.

When the container 1 is opened, the handle 24 can be swung out of theposition shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 to pennit the small article containers35 to be easily removed from the tray 20. The user can then carry withhim the container 35 which contains his favorite lures without carryingthe whole box 1.

From the foregoing, it should be apparent that the objects of thisinvention have been carried out. A tackle box has been provided whichpermits an increased number of small articles to be carried in anorderly manner without interfering with the large article-carryingcapacity of the tackle box. The tray 20 is suspended in the first boxhalf 2 to provide ample room in the bottom for large articles such asfishing reels. The small article containers are held in an uprightposition to fully utilize the entire box top 3 and insure that a maximumnumber of small articles containers can be used. The small articlecontainers are held in the box even if the container 1 is upset thusinsuring an orderly tackle box.

We claim:

1. A container comprising:

first and second box halves each having sidewalls and a bottom;

hinge means pivotally connecting an edge of one side of each box half sothat the container can be swung between open and closed positions,whereby the first box half serves as the bottom of the container and thesecond box half serves as the top of the container;

support means mounted within said first box half;

tray means removably mounted on said support means,

a plurality of parallel, spaced-apart retainer means mounted on theinside of aid tray means adapted to hold small article containers withsaid tray means; and

means pivotally mounted on said tray means for assisting said retainermeans in holding small article containers within said tray means.

2. The container of claim 1 wherein said tray means includes means forlimiting the pivotal movement of said handle.

3. The container of claim 1 wherein said support means includes a pairof support members mounted on opposite sidewalls of said first box halfand spaced from the bottom of said first box half and said tray meansextends above the edge of said first box half.

4. The container of claim 1 wherein said retainer means is an outwardlyprojecting rib and there are a plurality of ribs on opposite sidewallsof said tray means the the ribs on one sidewall are aligned with theribs on opposite sidewall.

5. The container of claim 4 wherein said support means includes meansfor preventing lateral movement of said tray means.

6. A case having atop, bottom and sidewalls comprising:

a pair of box halves each having sidewalls and a bottom;

hinge means pivotally connecting an edge of one sidewall of each boxhalf so that the case can be swung between open and closed positions;

support means mounted within one of said box halves;

tray means having sidewalls and a bottom removably mounted on saidsupport means;

retainer means mounted on opposite sidewalls of said support means; and

at least one small article container removably mounted on said traymeans adapted to be held by said retainer means and dimensioned toextend into the other box half when said case is closed.

7. The case of claim 6 further comprising handle means pivotally mountedon said tray means adapted to be pivoted between a position whichpermits removal of said small article container from said tray means anda position which substantially prevents movement of said small articlecontainer when said case is closed.

.8. The case of claim 7 wherein said retainer means includes at least apair of parallel, outwardly projecting ribs mounted on oppositesidewalls of said tray means and the ribs on one sidewall are alignedwith the ribs on the opposite sidewall and said small article containeris dimensioned to snugly fit between said ribs.

1. A container comprising: first and second box halves each havingsidewalls and a bottom; hinge means pivotally connecting an edge of oneside of each box half so that the container can be swung between openand closed positions, whereby the first box half serves as the bottom ofthe container and the second box half serves as the top of thecontainer; support means mounted within said first box half; tray meansremovably mounted on said support means, a plurality of parallel,spaced-apart retainer means mounted on the inside of aid tray meansadapted to hold small article containers with said tray means; and meanspivotally mounted on said tray means for assisting said retainer meansin holding small article containers within said tray means.
 2. Thecontainer of claim 1 wherein said tray means includes means for limitingthe pivotal movement of said handle.
 3. The container of claim 1 whereinsaid support means includes a pair of support members mounted onopposite sidewalls of said first box half and spaced from the bottom ofsaid first box half and said tray means extends above the edge of saidfirst box half.
 4. The container of claim 1 wherein said retainer meansis an outwardly projecting rib and there are a plurality of ribs onopposite sidewalls of said tray means the the ribs on one sidewall arealigned with the ribs on opposite sidewall.
 5. The container of claim 4wherein said support means includes means for preventing lateralmovement of said tray means.
 6. A case having a top, bottom andsidewalls comprising: a pair of box halves each having sidewalls and abottom; hinge means pivotally connecting an edge of one sidewall of eachbox half so that the case can be swung between open and closedpositions; support means mounted within one of said box halves; traymeans having sidewalls and a bottom removably mounted on said supportmeans; retainer meanS mounted on opposite sidewalls of said supportmeans; and at least one small article container removably mounted onsaid tray means adapted to be held by said retainer means anddimensioned to extend into the other box half when said case is closed.7. The case of claim 6 further comprising handle means pivotally mountedon said tray means adapted to be pivoted between a position whichpermits removal of said small article container from said tray means anda position which substantially prevents movement of said small articlecontainer when said case is closed.
 8. The case of claim 7 wherein saidretainer means includes at least a pair of parallel, outwardlyprojecting ribs mounted on opposite sidewalls of said tray means and theribs on one sidewall are aligned with the ribs on the opposite sidewalland said small article container is dimensioned to snugly fit betweensaid ribs.